Dax's Journal

What "it" is

It is true that Cat did lose focus during the ultrasound. But I can't really blame the guy as it was nearly an HOUR long procedure. And he was still being productive because he was paying bills.

So, anyway.....

This entire time that I've been pregnant, I've been certain that I was going to have a girl. All the old wives tales pointed to girl. I dreamed about a girl. Most people around me would look at the belly and declare that I was going to have a girl.

So imagine my complete and utter shock when the technician said, "This little one is a boy."

Cat said nothing, of course, because he had stopped paying attention. I said, "WHAT??? Can you check again?"

I think the technician may have thought of turning us over to social services right then.

So I got Cat's attention and the technican showed us that we did, indeed, have a boy. We were both stunned. She had to assure us that "little girls don't have 'sticky out things'" and that "no, that is NOT the umbilical cord".

You should have seen Cat's face. He had also set his mind to the fact that we were having a girl, but what he really wanted was a boy. I could tell he totally didn't believe what he was hearing at first. When it sunk in, he looked utterly blissful. Then he said, "Good. Now I don't have to buy the shotgun." I was REALLY surprised the technician didn't call social services then. Cat went on to explain that the shotgun was for polishing when his daughter's first date showed up at our house. But now that our daughter is a son, he no longer needs such scare tactics. I suggested that we may still need that gun if our son brings home some skanky mall rat. Can you believe that technician just let us walk right on out of there?

I'm so glad that we don't have to refer to the baby as "it" anymore. I'm so glad I don't have to write "he/she" anymore. I'm bummed that boy clothes just aren't as cute as girl clothes. We still have NO idea what we're going to do with the nursery because every idea that I had was centered around us having a girl.

We did start the registration process this evening by spending way too much time in Babies R Us. You should be able to see our registry online in a few days. (Just try to guess who picked out the clothing items we registered for.)

Explosions and Babies

Watching an ultrasound appointment take place in front of you is similar to watching a fireworks display on 4th of July.

You see...fireworks are way cool. I love explosions. When in West Sac, Michelle and I would park about 1/4 mile, if not closer, from where they were launching the fireworks and we could feel the vibrations shake the truck.

But apparently, I have ADD, so after about 2 and a half minutes of fireworks, I get bored. I mean, c'mon, most of the shows just recycle a bunch of their fireworks and string them together before the grand finale.

"Hey look, there's a happy face!"
"Hey there, it is again!"
"They already launched that trailing firework, why are they doing it again?"
"What?! Another happy face?"

If it was up to me, one of each type of firework would go up and then the grand finale would start and last for about 5 minutes. Total running time: 6 minutes.

Anyways, I digress. So onto the ultrasound. I was enthralled for the first few minutes. The baby was kicking and I could see Embry flailing around trying to get away from being invaded upon.

There was an arm. There was a leg. A foot. There's Embry's head. Heart. Arm again. Leg again. Foot. Cool!...The Spine!. Foot again. Hey there's Embry's face. Leg again. Foot...

So I was bored within minutes. Don't get me wrong. I don't find Embry boring. And I will always love the little thing, it's just the whole ADD thing.

And then the Grand Finale: The ultrasound lady shouts "You're having a *******!"

(I'll let Michelle announce what we're having).

Belly

Today my husband looked at my belly and declared it "huge" and I didn't punch him.

This is another fine example of "How Things Are Different When You're Pregnant".

A chart

This is the proposed personnel allocation chart I've created for Embry's first few months with us. It's tentative, of course, and totally depends on the actual birthdate.

Bigger chart is here, if you wanna see it.

Over.

Week 22

From this week's Baby Center update:

"How your baby's growing: Your baby now looks like a miniature newborn. He's 11 inches long and weighs about 15 ounces. His lips are becoming more distinct and his eyes are developed, though the iris (the colored part of the eye) still lacks pigment. Eyebrows and eyelids are in place. His pancreas, essential for hormone production, is developing steadily. The first signs of teeth appear as buds beneath the gum line. Before you know it, your baby will be smiling at you."

The big news this week, of course, will be from the ultrasound on Wednesday. Everyone keep your fingers crossed that our baby is not modest.

Appointment update

I had an appointment with Marion today. I got the results back on my fetal protein test and everything looks great. I got to hear the baby's heartbeat again. I also got to hear the baby kicking me. I only feel a small percent of those kicks because, thankfully, our little one's feet are still tiny.

Marion said I still seem to be measuring further along than I am. I guess we'll have a better idea after the ultrasound next Wednesday.

At my next appointment, I'll have to have more blood drawn to check for anemia. I also have to have a blood glucose test which involves drinking some nasty orange stuff full of sugar. That ought to get the baby kicking!

In other news...we are continuing to try to get the house in order for our little arrival. Cat has been busy organizing, cleaning, and filing. We also hired a landscaper to deal with our yard. We're leaving here in just a few minutes to go to a nursery to look at some trees and plants. After that, we may go to Goore's to look at cribs. Slowly but surely, we're getting prepared.

Week 21

Our baby now probably weighs about 12.5 ounces and is 10.5 inches long, head to toe. He she/has eyebrows and eyelinds and is beginning to grow fingernails.

Cat is reading a lot to the baby. He's already mastered the parental "someone is about to fall asleep so I will skip ahead several pages" trick. (The funny thing is that *I* am the one falling asleep, not necessarily the baby. So if our child grows up to think that all Dr. Suess books are only about 7 pages long, you will know why that is.)

I read that babies who are read to in the womb will suck more vigorously when I feed her/him while reading from a book frequently heard in utero.

We're still two weeks from being able to find out what we're having. The more impatient I get, the more convinced I am that we will be one of those couples whose baby becomes modest and uncooperative during the ultrasound. Part of me thinks that would be really funny. Another part of me wonders how soon you can start putting your child in timeout.

As for me.....the belly seems to have taken on a life of its own. It doesn't even feel like part of me anymore, really. It's getting bigger by the day. Sometimes bigger and bigger throughout a single day. It feels a bit like I have a melon stashed in there.

I have an orthodontic appointment on Wednesday. I am so hoping to get these braces off of my teeth before the baby arrives. Then I see Marion on Thursday which means I'll probably get to hear the baby's heartbeat again. YAY!

Week 20, Part II

Remember when I said I wasn't getting any fruit references anymore? Check out my 20 week update from Baby Center.

"By now your baby is about the size of a large sweet potato and you should be feeling her move around. Enjoy it — those rumbles are one of the true joys of pregnancy. She's also giving her new digestive system a little practice by swallowing amniotic fluid. She absorbs nutrients and water from this fluid. The unabsorbed matter continues into her bowel where it concentrates into meconium, the greenish black or light brown substance she'll pass the first few days after she's born."

By the way, those references to "she" are Baby Center's. We still don't know if our little sweet potato is of the girl or boy variety.

Week 20

This week is the halfway point. YAY! Below is a little illustration showing how much of my belly is baby at this point.

I've read that I may start to feel short-of-breath now from the uterus pushing up against my lungs. I also read that I need to be sure I'm getting enough iron. That could explain the fairly recent cravings of red meat!

Those little movements I've been feeling for awhile are getting more pronounced. Now when I feel the baby move, I'm certain that's what I'm feeling. I don't feel all the movements yet and I still get so excited when I do feel it.

Here are the latest gifts our baby has received.

My mom sent the weensiest shoes I think I've ever seen. These shoes make me think of when we'll be able to take our little one to Crested Butte. My friend Robin gave the baby his/her first teddy bear. It is so soft and snuggly. Robin also gave the baby the little silver box you see in the picture. That's for when our little one is bigger and starts losing baby teeth. The tooth goes in the box so the Tooth Fairy doesn't have to dig around under a pillow to get it.

My mom also sent my old Dr. Suess books and we read "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" to Embry the other night. Supposedly, our little pitcher has big ears now and should be able to hear what's going on in the outside world.

My friends Robin and Janice are hosting a baby shower for me in June. That's a bit early but we wanted to try to do it before I get too big (because I'll need to drive to the Bay Area) and before it gets too hot. Also, if we have it in June, we may be able to coax my mom out here to join us. (June 19th, mom. Check those ticket prices!)

In the meantime, we're continuing to get things done around the house. It seems nearly impossible that we'll have everything ready for the baby in time. But Cat is determined and doesn't seem concerned, so I'm trying to follow his lead. I'll feel a lot better once we have the ultrasound on 4/28 and I know what sort of plans we should make for the nursery. How funny will it be after we wait this long and then the child won't cooperate and let us know if he/she is a she or a he? It wouldn't surprise me at all.

Week 19

Our baby now (probably) measures about 6 inches from head to bottom and weighs around 8.5 ounces. I believe Embry has outgrown fruit references because I'm not seeing those anywhere anymore. Either that or they don't want to alarm me. "Your baby is the size of a large banana this week. In two weeks, it will have grown to the size of a very large canteloupe. By the time you give birth, your child will be roughly the size of a prize winning pumpkin. Enjoy!"

The brain is developing areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. I am completely amazed to read that, if our baby is a girl, she has 6 million eggs in her ovaries. This dwindles to fewer than 2 million by the time she's born. What in the world is the reason for this????

I've read that our baby is just starting to be aware of sounds outside the uterus, and that he/she may become startled at sudden noises. I'm slightly tempted to encourage people to sneak up on the baby and make loud noises but I, too, am easily startled so we'll not be doing that.

Embry's First Gift

Check this out. My friend Whitney (from college) made this. She calls it the "Umbilical Cord Hat". It is gracefully modeled here by a stuffed cat. When it arrived the other day, it cued up Michelle's crying (of course).

Michelle says: "The cuteness quotient is off the richter!"
Cat says: "This should keep Embry's tiny head warm when Michelle has the air conditioning turned up too high."

Thanks Whitney! :)